Nevada traffic stop leads to cocaine smuggling charges against three Calgary men

Jason van Rassel, Calgary Herald01.21.2014

Police discovered 45 kilograms of cocaine in a compartment built under the bed of a pickup truck following a traffic stop outside Las Vegas. Three Calgary men now face smuggling charges.Photo courtesy ALERT
/ Handout

Police discovered 45 kilograms of cocaine in a compartment built under the bed of a pickup truck following a traffic stop outside Las Vegas. Three Calgary men now face smuggling charges.Photo courtesy ALERT
/ Handout

A sweaty, shaking drug courier stopped on a Nevada highway helped lead authorities to a multimillion-dollar cocaine trafficking ring allegedly headquartered in Calgary.

Investigators with the Alberta Law Enforcement Response Teams announced Tuesday a joint probe with the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration has resulted in charges against three Calgary men accused of running the smuggling operation.

“What happened in Vegas didn’t stay in Vegas,” said Insp. Gerry Francois, putting his own twist on the gambling mecca’s famous marketing slogan.

The investigation began 15 months ago, when a Nevada Highway Patrol officer pulled over an Alberta man driving a pickup truck on a highway north of Las Vegas.

An arrest report obtained by the Herald stated the officer pulled over the motorist, Austin William Hill, for doing about 15 km/h over the posted 100 km/h limit.

Hill told the officer he was in the U.S. to buy a vehicle in Utah and was spending the night in Vegas while firming up the transaction.

The officer noted Hill appeared nervous — he was sweating and unable to stand still — but was on the verge of letting him go with a warning when he asked a final question: was Hill carrying any drugs?

Because of the amount of illegal drugs smuggled via major highways, it’s become common for law enforcement agencies in North America to train officers who do traffic enforcement to look for signs of more serious crimes, such as trafficking.

“Hill said ‘no’ and ‘(expletive) no’ to all the questions. When he responded to cocaine, Hill hesitated and looked down, breaking eye contact,” the report said.

A drug-sniffing dog deployed to the scene after Hill consented to a search of the truck led officers to 45 kilograms of cocaine packed in vacuum-sealed bags hidden inside a secret compartment built underneath the pickup truck’s cargo bed.

“This is a very sophisticated modification of this particular vehicle,” said Francois.

Authorities didn’t specify how investigators determined the cocaine was destined for Calgary. Online Nevada court records show Hill, 32, pleaded guilty to drug charges last year in a sealed plea agreement. He is scheduled to be sentenced in March.

Last week, police in Calgary arrested three men accused of orchestrating the operation.

Francois said the cocaine originated in Mexico and was allegedly acquired through connections with drug cartels, even though none of the suspects have criminal records or any ties to established organized crime groups.

“It amazes us, as we undertake these investigations, how individuals who have no prior criminal connections make these connections,” he said.

Francois wouldn’t specify how the suspects in this case were allegedly able to convince organized criminals to conduct business with them, but said it isn’t as unlikely as some would believe.

“They have associates, who have associates who have links to these types of individuals,” Francois explained.

Francois said investigators believe the operation successfully smuggled several hidden loads of cocaine into Canada over a six- to eight-month period prior to Hill’s arrest.

An online civil aviation registry shows the suspects co-own a single-engine plane kept at an airstrip in Okotoks, but Francois said the investigation didn’t turn up evidence it was used to ferry drugs.

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Nevada traffic stop leads to cocaine smuggling charges against three Calgary men

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